Chair, table, and the like



1. MATHIEU'. CHAIR, TABLE, AND THE LIKE.

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

APPLICATIONFILED JULY '311920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.l

...751. Venflw:

J. MATHIEU. CHAIR, TABLE, -AND THE LIKE.

I APPLICATION FILED lUlY 13.1920-- 1,4os,1 14.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

STATES UNITED PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH MATHIEU, or LYON, FRANCE. i

CHAIR, TABLE, AND THE LIKE To all whom. z't may concern:

Be it known vthat I, JosEr r MATHIEU, a

citizen of the French Republic, of Lyon,

lthe seat or table resting upon the ground.

It follows that a large number of such pieces may be stacked within an extremely small space.

Furthermore the system makes it possible, in the case of seats with backs, to introduce a back between two seats without thereby increasing the fixed space between the t`ops of the two superimposed seats and without reducing the number stacked within a given space.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention Fig's. 1 to 8 represent an elevation and a plan of the principal. stages in constructing a le l Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a chair with back constructed according to the principle of this invention.

Fig. 10 is a front view of the back alone, and Fig. 11 is a side view of the same. Fig. 12 shows a seat in elevation and sev- -eral smaller-seats piled up.

Fig. 13 is a section of the top of the seat. Fig. 14 is a section along A A of Fig. 12. Figs. 15 to -17 are lan views of models of `tables provided wit legs according to the new system. A

Fig. 18 represents a modification in perspective.

Figs. 19 to 22 illustrate further modifications.

The leg is formed preferably, as shown in Figs. 1 to 8, of a truncated tube c. The degrec of conicity is determined according to the article for which it is intended. and according to the intended sinking of the legs one within the other. The diameters of the base a and of the top l of the truncated cone Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Een-2.8, 1922.

Application med my 13, 1920. serial m. 396,003.

are also determinedaccording to their appli cation.

When the leg is to be shaped from sheet, the shaping isl produced' as shown'in Figs', 1 to 8, starting from thel truncated 'tube c and cutting the to andthe base perpen! dicularly to a vertlcal line` XFWY", which does not coincide with the axis X, Y, of the truncated cone, Fig. 1. Said tube is then longitudinally cut away along a certain length and along a sector d, equivalent tfo about one half the circumference, Fig. 3. Afterwards the base a of the truncated cone is slit longitudinally at m, Figs. f5: and 6, and

finally the slitted parts are turned over backwards soas to form two rectangular wings a', Figs. 7 and 8.

The result of this series of loperations is a truncated tube c, comprising a truncated conic part b. which forms the point of the leg intended to rest upon the ground and an inclined part c transversally incurvated and formed by the remaining portion of the truncated cone.

Vhen'each leg is so formed, if four of them are 'taken and fitted together, wing to wing, a and soldered and fixed by any suitable means, the frame of the seat will be obtained and all that remains isto t in the covering within the frame formed by the assemblage of the wings a of the fore-legs in order to produce a seat. Such covering will vary according to the seat, and it may, for instance, consist of a wooden bottom, caning, straw,.etc. j v l For the purpose of receiving said cover ing, the upper longitudinal edges of the wings a mustbe shaped so as' to form an interior rabbet on which is lodged the edges of the seatproper.

Furthermore, the wings a may have'any desired proiile. Figs. 9, 12 and 13 aree amples ofthe same'. In Fig. 9 the point o assemblage` of the ends of the wings a' is shown at p by a dotted line.

When the seat has a back, the latter is removable and is made in such manner that it forms a kind of pa'n which-can be fitted exactly on the top of the seat, the profile of which is determined accordingly, as for instance, the model of a chair with back shown in perspective in Fig. 9. In such case, the back g consists of a metallic late cut and shaped in such manner as to. orm a frame, the outer edges of which are bent at right ifo angles at a distance equivalent to the edge e of the frame of the seat, in order that the back may be fitted upon the top of the seat, as shown in Fig. 12.

The inner edges g of said ,frame g, form larabbet in which any filling z' may fit preferably with projection.

The edges of the back are exactly adapted to the edges of the projection e of the seat which has lat the corners an inwardly curved part e determined by the concave shape c of the legs. One of the sides of the back has two lugs la, to which are fixed two tenons j, the ends of which are cut so as to form notches 7c intended to secure the back in the requisite position of the seat as shown in Fig'. 11. For this purpose, a second frame Z parallel with the frame of the seat is provided at a few centimetres below the latter, the two superimposed frames being provided with holes o in the up er frame and holes o in the lower frame. guch holes are provided at the points required to permit the tenons j to be easil introduced and the notches c to catch be ow the second frame Z and hold the back with the requisite inclination whilst preventing the latter from being accidentally displaced.

The second frame Z which forms one piece with the legs and the upper frame is also intended to strengthen the top of the seat and to prevent any disruption of the same under an excessive weight.

Fig. 12 shows the superimposition of five seats and Fig. 14 represents the sections of their legs along line A A. It will be seen that the latter fit in exactly against one another along the whole length and that the truncated points b penetrate one another and form mutual'points of supportp In this manner the tops of the seats are superimposed without touching one another and whilst placed at a short distance so as to reduce as much as possible the space taken up in depth.

Said distance between the tops of the suerimposed seats is utilized to house each iiack g as also shown in Fig. 12. The tenons j project laterally, but they do not much interfere with the juXta-position of the stacks of seats.

Figs. 15, 16 and 17 dia-grammatically illustrate three ty es of tables provided with the legs describe which may be of any suitable number, and arranged at any point. It will be 'understood that the stacking of the tables will be the same as in the case of the seats.

`The invention may alsol be applied to other articles with legs which it is desired to pack up for dispatch or for storing.

Fig. 18 is a diagram illustrating the principle of the invention, which consists in the first place in giving to the seat or rather to the top of the seat a surface B C identical with the surface B lC of the rectangle in which the four legs are inscribed, said two surfaces forming the upper and lower faces of a cube, the height of which is the height of the seat. The angles of said cubes are out away, starting from nil and sloping inwards to the top, and having at the to a certain width varying according to the t ickness of the legs.

The cut away corners of the cube may be illustrates diagrammatically the stacking ofl four chairs.

The chair is made in four parts, for which purpose the chair is divided by two cross middle lines D D and E E which result in four anvular pieces 1, 2, 3 and 4. Pieces 1 .and 2 'form the front half of the chair and pieces 3 and 4 the back half which includes the back.

It follows that the two front parts each consist of a leg a, b, c', two wings a', a', and a quarter section of the top surface f. The two back parts 3 and 4 are similarly made up and furthermore include each one half i, z of the'back.

Each leg is made in the manner previously described from a truncated cone c', the summit of which b forms the end of the leg and the base a forms the top, which is joined to a', and to the seat f.

l The parts 3 and 4 consisting of one half of the back z', i, are arran ed so that the angle formed by the back with the top f is appreciably equal to the angle formed by said top and the axis of the legs in order that the stacking of the chairs may not be interfered with by the back, and furthermore that the base of the back should be laterall fixed without hiding the inset corner h', 1orined by the top of the incurvation of e eg.

Such fixing is obtained by connecting the lateral side of the back to the wing a by means of a curved arm z' running round the corner and connected with the aforesaid wing a. It follows that this arm z' occupies a position outside the two back corners of the rectangle in which the'four legs are' inscribed as clearly shown in plan in Fig. 3.

Each of the parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 is produced either by casting a light metal, for instance, aluminium, or by shaping metallic plates. Afterwards, said four parts are united together and xed by autogenous or electric soldering at their meeting edges.

Owing to the backward inclination of. the back and the arrangement of the arms i,

the corners c, which form the top of theback legs are uncovered as freely as those of the front legs. It follows that the chair lends itself to stacking as easily as a chair without a back. Furthermore, the superimposed chairs may be differently directed without the back causing hindrance. Fig. 4 shows the stacking of four chairs, the respective backs of which z', 1, i2, s are alternately opposed, the front legs of one being piled upon the back legs of the other, and so forth.

lVhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A chair, table or the like, wherein each leg is inclined inwards to a vertical line, forming the edge of an imaginary parallelepiped within which is inscribed the whole of the legs when the latter are four in number, the ends of said legs in contact with the ground intersecting the angles of the base of said parallelepiped and the upper parts of said legs forming rounded corners of the `top of the parallelepiped, the cross-section of said legs being inwardly or outwardly curved, the seat or top of the chair or the like coinciding with the said topfof the parallelepiped and having rounded portions coincidin with the rounded corners of the top of said legs whereby the chairs or the like can be freely stacked in and on one another.

2. A chair asin claim 1, comprising a removable back which has a shape similar to that of the top of the seat and is provided with turned up edges so as to l capable of -being fitted snugly upon the top of the seat,

the said back being kept in its normal position by means of claws arranged so as to engage catches arranged below the surface of the seat.

3. A chair of the character described provided with a fixed back inclined at an inclination similar to and symmetrical with the inclination of the legs, the back being so mounted as to leave the inwardly directed corner of the seat proper, and thereby the tops of the legs absolutely free so as not to hinder the insertion of the legs of similar chairs, so as to allow free stacking of said chairs in and on one another in the manner described.

In witness whereof I have signed this specication in the presencel of two witnesses.

JOSEPH MATHIEU.

Witnesses GASTON YEANNIANB, CANTBURT CARO. 

